Merkel and Trump: A study in contrasting images from G-7

Blanca Howell |Sunday, June 10, 2018

Trump slams Trudeau, says US won’t endorse G7 communique

He left before any resolution was announced on the traditional joint statement from the seven industrialized nations in the group, which in addition to the USA and Canada includes Britain, Italy, France, Germany and Japan.

In a statement issued following Mr Trump's tweets, Mr Trudeausaid he remained focus on what was accomplished at the G7 summit. "The prime minister said nothing he hasn't said before - both in public, and in private conversations with the president".

Trump tweeted late Saturday that he instructed USA representatives to withdraw support for the final joint statement from the G-7 summit following Trudeau's remarks.

Trump says his tariffs are meant to protect USA industry and workers from unfair worldwide competition as part of his "America First" agenda.

"And that ends", Trump said.

"So you go tariff-free, you go subsidy-free ... now I did suggest and I guess they are going to go back to the drawing board and check it out", he said. "There was no reason that this should have happened".

Mr Trudeau's office, reeling from the abrupt Trump reversal hours after the two men had joked and smiled their way through a fractious G7 meeting, said only that Mr Trudeau had said nothing in his news conference that he hadn't said before.

Trump, for his part, has argued that the European Union countries and Canada have imposed tariffs on USA goods for years to the detriment of U.S. farmers and factories, though he did not mention any specific regulations.

- Canada-U.S. trade: The United States is, by far, Canada's biggest customer.

But Trump's outburst suggested that any deal had collapsed, and his more or less explicit threat to impose sanctions on imports of cars will outrage his ostensible allies - in particular Germany and Canada who produce many for the large U.S. market.

Led by the USA, the group kicked out Russian Federation in 2014 over its annexation of Crimea and its support for pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine. "And we charge nothing", Trump said.

Prior to his arrival on Friday, the United States president injected additional controversy by suggesting that the G7 offer a seat at the table to Russian Federation, which was ousted from the group in 2014.

Trump departed the annual G7 gathering after arriving late to a breakfast on gender equity and skipping later sessions on climate change, clean energy and ocean protection.

Trump called the summit a "one time shot" for Kim, but expressed optimism at the beginning of talks with the North Korean regime.

"I would say that the level of relationships is a 10 - we have a great relationship. That's what I do". The U.S. has recently thrown up or reinforced several barriers to that open border - in aerospace, lumber, and most recently steel and aluminum.

The Canadian Press has learned the Trudeau government is planning to announce a 400-million-dollar investment to help send the world's poorest girls to school. Roughly 28,000 American service members and civilian military personnel are now stationed in South Korea.

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